The movements of a motor vehicle which occur when it is traveling mean that fuel in the vehicle tank is constantly in motion, and such movements can result in noise which is perceived as being a nuisance, in particular in acceleration and braking phases. Admittedly, fuel tanks may be provided with internal installation components which damp the movements of the fuel, but that is essentially for the purpose of keeping an adequate amount of fuel in the region of the discharge opening of the tank, under all travel conditions which occur in a practical situation, in order in that way to ensure an uninterrupted supply of fuel to the engine, even when the tank is less than full. Those components in the form of for example calming or surge-resistant pots, rings or the like are however of comparatively small dimensions in relation to the cross-sectional area of the tank so that the major part of the cross-sectional area of the tank remains free and thus a surge movement in the tank in the direction of travel of the vehicle is not substantially damped, for example under vehicle braking. Consequently, when the moving fuel impacts in a more or less unbraked condition and in substantially perpendicular relationship against the wall of the tank, the kinetic energy inherent in the moving fuel results in conversion into sound energy, in particular in those regions in which, upon impact against the tank wall, the fuel cannot escape or can escape only to a slight degree. Such regions of the tank are for example corner regions or other regions which are enclosed on a plurality of sides. It will be appreciated that the distance that the fuel covers within the tank before it impinges against a tank wall also plays a part. For that reason the generation of noise is particularly pronounced in those tanks whose longest extent is parallel to the direction of travel.
Admittedly, to resolve that problem, it has already been proposed that the fuel tank may be provided with a device for absorbing the kinetic energy of the fuel disposed therein, by virtue of a plate-shaped baffle element of plastic material being provided locally at least in an upper comer region of the fuel tank, as in DE 39 05 611 C2. That structure however is comparatively complicated and expensive. In addition it can involve difficulties if the tank is produced in one piece, for example by means of a blow molding process, from plastic material, as is nowadays frequently the case.